It is also important to create an atmosphere in which individuals are willing to freely express their feelings without fear of being reprimanded or criticized. When a person is afraid to openly state their thoughts and beliefs, an organization will not benefit. At a typical meeting, individuals from various departments or disciplines attend; some have engineering, marketing, production, plus other experiences. You should encourage those that don't have a background in those experiences to ask question those that do.

4.) Develop a problem-solving atmosphere …

During the course of the meeting, encourage individuals to be assertive and to discourage those who have "thin skin" from reacting defensively. Developing different views on the way and means of solving problems is the fundamental basis for new concepts and ideas. As opposed to meetings in which those who are dominant tended to humiliate or intimidate others.

5.) Request thoughts in writing after the meeting …

In every meeting there will always be those who are gifted in communicating their ideas and those with less such abilities. Many years ago I learned a very valuable lesson from a boss I worked for in the Aero Space Industry. He began the meeting by simply saying he realized some would be very verbal in communicating how they felt, while others had the same compelling feelings, but found it more difficult to communicate them. Therefore, he said, "After our meeting today, I want each of you to sleep on what has been suggested and tomorrow, I want you to put your thoughts in writing. And please, don't write a lengthy novel, one or two pages will do." Since then, I have found how more beneficial a meeting may be by allowing those who are less gifted in what they say to put their thoughts in writing.

I sincerely hope the foregoing is of valuable assistance to the reader in making them more aware of the importance of the critical confluence of negotiating and management in every organization. They are the inseparable keys to executive success.

Henry H. Calero is President of C-M Associates located in Redwood City, California. Besides co-authoring How to Read a Person Like a Book, he also authored or co-authored Winning the Negotiation; Negotiate the Deal You Want; The Human Side of Negotiating. He has two new books that will be published in 2005: The Power of Nonverbal Communication: What You Do is More Important Than What You Say! and The Soup of Success Has Many Ingredients. He can be reached at HankCalero@aol.com